Aagaard: "We have to be realistic"

One of the many new players of the Men’s CL team, Viborg HK, is Danish international Mikkel Aagaard. He joined the Danish silver medallists on a three-year contract before the season.

The 27-year old right winger arrives from Bidasoa, Spain. He played 44 international matches for Denmark, therefore he knows a lot about international top handball. This also means that his expectations about his new team are pretty realistic. Eurohandball.com talks to the experienced winger.

Eurohandball.com: What was it like for you to come to Viborg?

Mikkel Aagaard: Is has been a positive experience. I think Viborg is a highly professional club that invested in many good players for the coming seasons. I feel fine in the club and in the team.

Eurohandball.com: Do you see it as an advantage or a disadvantage to be one out of the 10 new players in the Viborg squad?

Mikkel Aagaard: I definitely see it as an advantage. Being one out of so many new players gives you the chance to have an influence on the process of building a new team. It is an opportunity you would not have if you were the only new player.

Furthermore, it is a great challenge for all of us to get this new team to function together

Eurohandball.com: Why did you choose Viborg?

Mikkel Aagaard: The chance to play in the Champions League again did, of course, play a large part in my decision. I played in the Champions League before and I remember it was a great experience. Furthermore, I believed that Viborg was an attractive club with a professional management. They had a concept that I would like to be part of.

Eurohandball.com: With so many new players in the team, what can we expect from Viborg this season?

Mikkel Aagaard: Of course it will take some time to get all those new players integrated in the team, and it will also take a while for this team to reach the peak. However, I do think we can reach the championship play-offs in Denmark, and I also hope we can do well in Europe.

Eurodhandball.com: What would you call ‘success’ in the Champions League?

Mikkel Aagaard: We have to be realistic and admit that we are outsiders in the group. HSV Hamburg are undoubtedly the huge favourites, and even though we defeated Chehovskie Medvedi by one goal in a training tournament in Poland before this season, it will probably be very difficult for us to repeat it in the CL. Medvedi are very strong, and now they will take us seriously.

I don’t know a lot about the current strength of our last opponent, Zaporozhye, but they are probably the opponents we could beat.

Realistically, it would be great to finish third in our group and go on to the Cup Winners’ Cup – but of course we go for the victory every single game.